Nicol Epple ENG 764 Writing-Week4, Day 3 (Post) Colonial Poetry I do not know much of Italy’s history and therefore Elizabeth Barret Browning’s “Casa Guidi Windows” proved quite interesting. Her poem chronicles Italy’s tumultuous gestation and birth as a unified nation. E.B.B. and Robert Browning lived in the palazzo in Florence called Casa Guidi during the writing of the poem, 1851. The narrator tells stories from her observations through the windows of Casa Guidi. Symbolically, as a foreigner she is in a space separate from the revolution-within the walls of the Casa—yet she studies the revolution and political happenings through the windows of the house. But E.B.B. does not open the poem with scenes of battle rather she places a young child by the church singing of liberty. The hope of Italy’s future rings melodiously hopeful. She then speaks of “older singer’s lips” who bewailed Italy enchained (16, 21). I cannot due E.B.B. justice through paraphrasing her next one-hundred-fifty lines. I will bring up what I find very interesting when thinking about inheritance. Line 175 states, “Now tell us what is Italy?” Men reply, “Virgil, Cicero, Catullus, Caesar, Boccaccio, Dante, Petrarca, Angelo Raffael, Pergolese” (176-181). These men of letters, art, and power—the history makers—these are they which define Italy, so E.B.B. poses. I think it interesting that over one-hundred-fifty years later similar responses could be given. When one thinks of post-colonial Italy, these outstanding men come to mind. Could we say that individuals form a nation’s inheritance? Yet, the narrator responds, “We do not serve the dead—the past is past!” (217). I complement the narrator for wanting to look brightly into the full future of Italy, but must disagree with the sentiment. We always entertain the dead; they are our inheritance, unless like E.B.B., we consciously sever ourselves as she did with her father. At the close of Part II of the poem the narrator still speaks of gazing “through Casa Guidi windows” (761) yet now she includes herself in the subject taking action: “We will trust God” (776). And in full circle the children as at the beginning are smiling about the future (773-774). The inclusion of herself in the plural pronoun is one way that E.B.B. shows empathy for the Italians. Her care, concern, and circumspectness as an Englishwoman living with the Italians through these revolutions speak much of her person. I also just want to mention how entertaining I find May Kendall’s poetry. I never imagined that people of the nineteenth century thought of aliens! Or that is how I see the Trilobites. I love the way she elucidates social maladies through punchy satirical humor that makes it hard not to smile when reading. “The Sandblast Girl and the Acid Man” and “In the Toy Shop” though not dealing with issues any less weighty did have a heavier delivery. “In the Toy Shop” is still very appropriate to many of today’s young girls/women, girls who feel from society’s pressure that they have to be pretty, physically attractive, smart, and talented in many ways—to be a “girl who has it all.” After reading this poem I feel like yelling, “Yes, that is possible if we were all made of wood!” Or even more apropos to our culture—made of plastic just like Barbie. I can’t wait to use this poem in the classroom.
ENG 764
Writing-Week4, Day 3
(Post) Colonial Poetry
I do not know much of Italy’s history and therefore Elizabeth Barret Browning’s “Casa Guidi Windows” proved quite interesting. Her poem chronicles Italy’s tumultuous gestation and birth as a unified nation. E.B.B. and Robert Browning lived in the palazzo in Florence called Casa Guidi during the writing of the poem, 1851. The narrator tells stories from her observations through the windows of Casa Guidi. Symbolically, as a foreigner she is in a space separate from the revolution-within the walls of the Casa—yet she studies the revolution and political happenings through the windows of the house.
But E.B.B. does not open the poem with scenes of battle rather she places a young child by the church singing of liberty. The hope of Italy’s future rings melodiously hopeful. She then speaks of “older singer’s lips” who bewailed Italy enchained (16, 21). I cannot due E.B.B. justice through paraphrasing her next one-hundred-fifty lines. I will bring up what I find very interesting when thinking about inheritance. Line 175 states, “Now tell us what is Italy?” Men reply, “Virgil, Cicero, Catullus, Caesar, Boccaccio, Dante, Petrarca, Angelo Raffael, Pergolese” (176-181). These men of letters, art, and power—the history makers—these are they which define Italy, so E.B.B. poses. I think it interesting that over one-hundred-fifty years later similar responses could be given. When one thinks of post-colonial Italy, these outstanding men come to mind. Could we say that individuals form a nation’s inheritance? Yet, the narrator responds, “We do not serve the dead—the past is past!” (217). I complement the narrator for wanting to look brightly into the full future of Italy, but must disagree with the sentiment. We always entertain the dead; they are our inheritance, unless like E.B.B., we consciously sever ourselves as she did with her father.
At the close of Part II of the poem the narrator still speaks of gazing “through Casa Guidi windows” (761) yet now she includes herself in the subject taking action: “We will trust God” (776). And in full circle the children as at the beginning are smiling about the future (773-774). The inclusion of herself in the plural pronoun is one way that E.B.B. shows empathy for the Italians. Her care, concern, and circumspectness as an Englishwoman living with the Italians through these revolutions speak much of her person.
I also just want to mention how entertaining I find May Kendall’s poetry. I never imagined that people of the nineteenth century thought of aliens! Or that is how I see the Trilobites. I love the way she elucidates social maladies through punchy satirical humor that makes it hard not to smile when reading. “The Sandblast Girl and the Acid Man” and “In the Toy Shop” though not dealing with issues any less weighty did have a heavier delivery. “In the Toy Shop” is still very appropriate to many of today’s young girls/women, girls who feel from society’s pressure that they have to be pretty, physically attractive, smart, and talented in many ways—to be a “girl who has it all.” After reading this poem I feel like yelling, “Yes, that is possible if we were all made of wood!” Or even more apropos to our culture—made of plastic just like Barbie. I can’t wait to use this poem in the classroom.